Iraq's parliament has passed a long-delayed election law required for national elections to be held in January.

The law won approval Sunday from 141 of the almost 200 Iraq lawmakers present after a tense, day-long debate.

The lawmakers overcame a key dispute about how to conduct the election in northern Iraq's ethnically-mixed and oil-rich city of Kirkuk.

Iraqi Kurds have long sought to incorporate Kirkuk into their autonomous region in northern Iraq. But, many of the city's Arab and Turkmen residents oppose such a move and want to remain under the control of Iraq's central government.

Iraq's upcoming national elections are a crucial test for the country as it takes more responsibility for its own security ahead of a gradual withdrawal of U.S. forces.

It was not clear if the delayed passage of the law will give Iraqi authorities enough time to hold the elections as scheduled in mid-January.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki had warned that Iraq could spiral into a new cycle of chaos if the elections do not go ahead.


Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.